The market for games that don’t require payment is filled with many options, and one game that stands out to a lot of people is Fortnite by Epic Games. However, there are other games that cater to specific genres. For instance, Genshin Impact has a style reminiscent of Nintendo’s Breath of the Wild, but in an adorable anime form. Meanwhile, Destiny 2 from Bungie has dominated the “looter shooter” genre, attracting millions of players over time. But in 2018, Phoenix Labs introduced the beta for its free-to-play game, Dauntless, which is seen as a competitor to Monster Hunter.
As an analyst, I found Dauntless incredibly intriguing when it first debuted, especially considering its roots in Capcom’s iconic series. It simplified numerous systems, wrapped it up in an appealing art style, and employed a cosmetic-centric monetization model for accessibility. Essentially, Dauntless sought to offer a more casual, approachable take on the acclaimed Monster Hunter franchise. In a matter of weeks, we’ll be graced with the next installment in that series, Monster Hunter Rise: Sunbreak.
Despite being relatively unknown to many, Dauntless has been flourishing for quite some time. Following its exit from open beta in 2019, it attracted more than 15 million players. The game managed to keep its player base excited with innovative concepts such as “Escalation,” which enabled teamwork to battle multiple giant creatures. Dauntless’ weapon enhancement system encouraged players to put extra effort into improving their favorite weapons.
From 2018’s open beta, Dauntless steadily gained popularity with positive reviews from its community until around 2024 when things began to take an unexpected turn. In the lead-up to Phoenix Labs’ anticipated “Awakening” update on December 5, 2024, there was a noticeable absence of news from the developers. This update promised new exciting elements such as a unique behemoth and island to explore, similar to previous updates. However, one of the standout features is the ability for players to wield two different weapons at once, enabling on-the-fly swapping to adapt to various situations – a feature that Monster Hunter Wilds is also implementing.
Not My Hunting Grounds
With the latest update, Dauntless made its debut on Steam, escaping its confinement within Epic Games. Steam’s community platforms provide insights into the response to this update, which has been largely unfavorable as indicated by numerous negative reviews and even review bombing on Xbox. Despite this, it’s important to note that the current daily player count for Dauntless on Steam is relatively low (less than a few hundred) according to SteamDB, though this doesn’t fully represent the active player base across Xbox, PlayStation, and PC via the Epic Games Store. Regardless of platform, it’s clear that there’s significant dissatisfaction leading to a noticeable decline in players, revealing a rather unpleasant reality.
The removal of several features, such as customizable lanterns for special abilities and the prestige system for weapons, has significantly diminished what made Dauntless stand out as an appealing alternative to Monster Hunter. Additionally, many crafting options have been taken away.
For years, I’ve cherished the Cell Fusion system – a unique feature that breathed life into my gaming experience. Alas, it seems this beloved mechanism has been taken away from us. This innovative system enabled me to fuse surplus Cells, which acted as gems in other MMOs, together to create higher rarity versions. These enhanced versions significantly impacted various game builds, offering a strategic depth that I truly appreciated.
One puzzling move made in this update was the studio deciding to eliminate five distinct islands from the game without providing a reason. This decision led to a loss of visual diversity in the available locales, effectively discarding them. If eliminating numerous locations, items, and essential game components wasn’t enough, they further aggravated players by resetting everyone’s progress in Dauntless.
Hey Dauntless, Where’s My Stuff?
In the Awakening update, each player’s cosmetic purchases remained unchanged. However, upon returning, only a limited number of items were retained by the players. These included challenging-to-craft exotic weapons and specific resources obtained from behemoths.
To seasoned gamers, the prospect of a fresh start within an online game might seem appealing, even evoking a sense of nostalgia for some. However, Dauntless lacks the option to create multiple characters, and the reset was imposed on all players without proper consultation, leading to the loss of hundreds of hours of accumulated progress. This undoubtedly contributes to the unfavorable response towards Awakening’s launch.
While perusing Steam’s reviews, a notable comment came from a player who had invested over 500 hours playing the game on the Nintendo Switch prior to its release on Steam. This dedicated player mourned the loss of their hard-earned in-game items such as weapons, armor sets, lanterns, and rare cells due to the game’s unavailability on Steam. Furthermore, they expressed disappointment because although they had been willing to spend money on the game through battle passes, they now feel alienated by the way certain weapons are locked behind paywalls in the microtransaction store.
Within the community, there’s significant debate regarding this issue. For a long time, Dauntless has been financially supported by cosmetics and battle passes. However, with the introduction of Awakening, players can now only get unique weapons using weapon tokens. These tokens are either earned through weekly tasks within the game or purchased with real money. This setup causes a sense of urgency or scarcity, as players fear missing out on weapons that might not reappear in the shop soon enough.
To summarize,
In summary, it’s important to mention that the weapon-leveling system has been significantly slowed down post Awakening. Earlier, players could level up their weapons by playing conventionally. Although this method still applies, after reaching a specific point, you can only obtain the required experience for a full upgrade at a moderate pace through Aetherite.
Aetherite resembles systems found in “gatcha” games, where it involves either persistent grinding or spending real money. The system offers three tiers of Aetherite, which can be used to hasten the leveling process of a chosen weapon. By establishing an endgame levelling system that emphasizes grinding rare items or buying them instead of actively slaying monsters, the enjoyment derived from the core gameplay of monster-slaying is diminished.
As a tech enthusiast, I’ve been closely following Phoenix Labs, and it seems they’re currently grappling with a series of decisions that, from my perspective, appear short-sighted – a stark contrast to their past strategic moves. The big question on everyone’s mind is: What has led Phoenix Labs down this unexpected path?
It’ll take a miracle for Phoenix Labs to rise from these ashes
As a researcher, I’d rephrase it like this: Following 2020, Phoenix Labs was initially under Garena Games’ umbrella. This association didn’t impact their day-to-day activities, enabling them to continue crafting Dauntless and unveiling Fae Farm in 2023. However, a prior agreement with Epic Games kept Dauntless off Steam for quite some time, which could have hindered its reach of “viral” popularity, particularly on PC platforms. Regrettably, last year in May, Phoenix Labs underwent layoffs exceeding 100 employees, leaving the studio in a more challenging state before the Awakening update was rolled out.
Additionally, it’s worth noting that last October, a report from Game Developer unveiled a clandestine purchase of Phoenix Labs by Forte Labs, which took place in 2023. This secret acquisition was intended to be kept hidden among the employees, suggesting possible behind-the-scenes changes in direction. Combining this with recent layoffs and the enveloping atmosphere of secrecy around the acquisition, the overall image appears quite grim.
Due to widespread discontent within the community and a notable decrease in players ahead of its upcoming major update “Umbral Reign,” Phoenix Labs has unfortunately had to implement additional layoffs. On their official LinkedIn page, they publicly announced that the majority of their team members were terminated.
As players anxiously await information about how layoffs could affect their favorite games, there are concerns that Phoenix Labs might be facing severe difficulties, perhaps even nearing collapse. It seems highly unlikely that Phoenix Labs, in its current state, can recover and rebuild, given the potential impact of these troubles.
Read More
- EigenLayer restaking protocol’s slashing testnet now live
- 3 Spider-Man Villains That Should Appear in the Next PlayStation Game
- FIL PREDICTION. FIL cryptocurrency
- Marvel Rivals Season 1 is bringing the Fantastic Four — here’s the Invisible Woman in action
- POL PREDICTION. POL cryptocurrency
- EastEnders airs huge Cindy Beale update in early iPlayer edition
- Whales and retail traders keep Arbitrum from falling — Here’s how
- Will GOAT’s latest 31% hike finally push it above $1 on the charts?
- Grantchester season 9 cast: Meet the characters in ITV drama
- Looks Like DOOM 64 Is Getting a Native PS5 Port
2025-01-29 21:11